Hi. My name is Rebecca. I have a new life in Christ. Before re:generation I was a slave to productivity. I was also resentful, easily offended, and often unforgiving. During re:generation, I was restored and renewed through God’s people and His Word. After re:generation, I still have struggles, but I am now equipped to recover from them quickly and biblically.
Table of Contents[Hide][Show]
What is re:generation?
Re:generation is a 12-step discipleship program that helps people overcome past hurts, addictions, and sin patterns. Through weekly meetings and daily homework, participants work through the twelve steps with the help of their small group and mentor.
Weekly meetings include large group time with new teaching and/or testimonies from people who have already gone through re:generation. This is followed by small group time. Due to the nature of sensitive topics discussed during small groups, each small group is comprised of either all women or all men.
Who should participate in re:generation?
Re:generation is for adults who can answer “yes” to any of the following questions.
- Do I harbor resentment against anyone, including God?
- Do I have any fears that put distance in my relationships with others and with God?
- Have I ever been hurt by anyone?
- Have I sinned by harming others or myself?
- Have my thoughts or actions ever strayed from the Bible’s definition of purity or oneness in marriage?
- Do I struggle with a sin pattern or addiction that I cannot overcome on my own?
Before re:generation, I would have claimed that I didn’t need a recovery program. However, the above questions represent the sections of Inventory in Step 4, and I answered yes to every question.
How long does it take to complete the re:generation program?
Participating in regeneration requires a substantial time commitment both for the daily homework and the weekly meetings. We began Groundwork on October 4th and completed Step 12 on August 1st which made for a 10-month commitment. We did take breaks for major holidays.
The steps learned through re:generation are meant to be practiced for a lifetime. We all still make mistakes that require God’s continued grace and our continued confession, repentance, forgiveness, and amends.
What does it cost to participate in re:generation?
At our church, the only cost was for the six study books used during the course of re:generation. Each book was $10; thus, the total cost was $60. We purchased and received these books at the time of need rather than all at the beginning.
The cost may differ at other re:generation locations.
What are the 12 steps of re:generation?
Groundwork (Book 1)
Before diving into the twelve steps of re:generation, participants work to shore up a firm foundation through a six-week study called Groundwork. This helps them understand their need for re:generation through Christ and helps them feel comfortable in their small groups before pressing into more difficult topics.
Steps 1-3: Admit, Believe, Trust (Book 2)
The most pivotal moment for me during the first three steps was when I wrote a letter to myself for the footprint exercise in Step 1: Admit. Here, I came face to face with my reason for joining a recovery program.
Footprint 1: A Letter to Me
November 21, 2021
Dear Rebecca,
In August of 2021, you decided to take a step of faith to draw closer to God through re:generation. You didn’t have spare time in the calendar for this, and you knew it would be a sacrifice for you and your family. But you came to the information night, and you heeded God’s call to begin recovery.
Why did you need recovery? You were running on empty – using up your energy and resources every time they were replenished. You did the only thing you knew how to do – to just keep taking the next step and completing the next task so that everything ran as smoothly as possible for you and your family.
You were tired and exhausted – often at your wits end. You made comments like, “I just don’t have the bandwidth to do that.” But you felt like a failure when you couldn’t achieve everything on your to-do list.
You valued friends and family and never wanted to let anyone down. But in trying to keep up with everyone, you spread yourself too thin and still couldn’t give the kind of quality time you so longed to give.
The worst part was that you would come to the end of your day and realize that God hadn’t been first in your life. It was so hard to do all the things and make the proper time for God too. You still tried, and you stayed in the Word through She Reads Truth, but you were usually behind and playing catch-up.
You didn’t struggle as much with trusting that God had a plan and giving to His kingdom, but you did struggle with prayer and worship. Those connections with God have always come harder for you – not because you don’t love God with all your heart, soul, mind, and strength, but because you let everything else in life take priority.
You felt such a burden for your homeschool and household operations. These things were worthy of your time, but you didn’t know how to ask for help, how to step back, how to relax.
You also had a blog that showed promise but you never felt like you truly had time to devote to it. Your husband began to pursue his passion of photography. When he announced fewer working days and your burden didn’t look like it would lessen, you resented him. Yet you and he communicated, and by God’s grace, you are working to be on the same page.
In a year from now, after completing the 12 steps of recovery, you hope to be madly in love with Jesus and closer than ever to your husband. You want to have margin in your life while still attending to those people and things that matter.
In Step 2: Believe, I reaffirmed my belief in God as my savior and that He was the only one who could restore me. The footprint for this step included a written prayer of belief.
Even though I was already a Christian when I joined re:generation, Step 3: Trust was still necessary for me. Beyond just believing that God would change me, I had to trust that he would, and I had to trust the process of re:generation.
Steps 4-6: Inventory, Confess, Repent (Books 3 & 4)
Step 4: Inventory was hard. I didn’t want to write down my sins and faults. I didn’t want to revisit past hurts. I didn’t want to share my inventory with my mentor. But I did. I laid bare parts of my soul that I had bottled up for years. And sometimes when I thought my shame would overtake me, my mentor softly responded, “Me too.”
Writing out my inventory felt like a full confession, and truth be told I didn’t want to return to it. Burning it sounded like a better plan. But in Step 5: Confess, I spoke aloud each of my sins to God and admitted my wrongdoing.
Once again, Step 6: Repent had me returning to the inventory I had made in Step 4. This time, I drew up repentance plans to face the sin patterns that my inventory brought to light.
Steps 7-9: Follow, Forgive, Amends (Book 5)
Step 7: Follow helped me develop the following mission statement for my life. I hope to truly live this out.
Footprint 7: My Mission Statement
To glorify God in my relationships and in my solitude whether at work, at play, or at rest.
To have others recognize the love of Jesus when they interact with me because I:
- enjoy Him
- reflect His goodness
- live in His will
- truly know and love Him
To serve others and share the gospel.
Step 8: Forgive was eye-opening for me. I had so many misconceptions about biblical forgiveness. This step clarified what true biblical forgiveness is. For the first time I understood that forgiveness of someone’s sin against me was between me and God. The other person did not need to seek forgiveness from me for me to complete this step.
Although I’ve not yet completed Step 9: Amends, I do have a list of people with whom I need to make amends. For each of these people, I must truthfully confess my sin and ask for forgiveness. In some cases, I may need to offer restitution.
One amends that I have made is with a woman whose friendship I lost several years ago. At the time, I thought it was best to try to reconcile without bringing up past hurts, but in doing so I never made amends. The thing about the amends process is that you cannot control the response of the other person. I chose to write a letter of amends and heard nothing in reply for about a year. I eventually ran into her and mustered the courage to ask if she had received my letter. In her words our past hurts were all “water under the bridge.”
Because I truly only want the best for her, I know that my heart has healed. While I could have stopped at forgiveness, making amends helped me finally overcome my brokenness toward her.
Steps 10-12: Continue, Intimacy, Regenerate (Book 6)
Steps 10, 11, and 12 occurred during a hectic and trying time in my life. Due to unexpected travel, I often found myself catching up on homework the night before or day of my next re:generation meeting. Even though I couldn’t devote the time I should have to the homework, these steps helped me see my need to continue the re:generation process throughout my life.
These final steps also prompted me to choose my next course of action in my spiritual journey. Since I’ve always struggled with prayer, my new focus is on learning to pray and staying in the Word.
Conclusion
My Story of re:generation
- Before re:generation: my life was overwhelming as I tried to keep all the plates spinning {family, homeschool, blogging}. God was last on my priorities list.
- When I began re:generation, I thought past hurts would continue to pull me down, but God showed me how to deal with them biblically.
- Because of Christ, I can put God first and still enjoy my family, homeschool, and blog.
- I am not finished. God is still changing me by helping me live at peace with those around me.
- If I can encourage you with one thing, it’s this: Take this step of faith, put in the time and work, and God will renew you.
Your Story of re:generation
Is it your turn to participate in re:generation? Find out more at regenerationrecovery.org.